Almost Never
by Kylie-Chan
Summary: AU Gaara's insane. He knows it, and he knows that his siblings are afraid of him. And yet, his savior ends up being his older brother...mild shounenai, sandcest
1. Saviour

A/N: I was only half-awake and half-sane when I wrote this. Scratch that. I don't think I had even a glimmer of sanity in me when I wrote this.

WARNING: AU. Contains mild GaaraxKankuro slash, incest. Don't like, don't read.

Disc.: Don't own Naruto; I just own my set of Naruto keychains.

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Gaara looked up from his spot on the roof, his aqua eyes unblinking. It was a full moon tonight; his blood was beginning to rush. The doctors had told him…no, not him…they had told Temari, but he'd heard it anyways…they said he was crazy. He was an insomniac; if he ever slept, which was very rare, it was for a maximum of an hour. The voice, that voice…it kept him up all night long, threatening to devour him if he dared to sleep.

They said he had something called DID…the voice, Shukaku it called itself, was his 'alter'. Gaara didn't really know all the terms for his 'condition'; he just knew that it was the reason everyone hated him. His father, his siblings, his uncle…they all thought he was a monster. When Gaara was younger, he hadn't quite understood what was wrong with him; he thought he was normal. He looked normal, except for the dark, heavy rings around his eyes. Now, of course, he knew that he _was_ a monster. Or at least, a part of him was.

Gaara had been pulled out of normal schools at a young age. He had been 6, just entering 1st grade. A kid, some boy, had made fun of him because he had carried his teddy bear to school. Gaara couldn't remember the rest, but he knew that the kid had gotten a broken nose and a black eye; his father was loath to remind him of it quite often.

After that, none of the kids would go near him if they could help it, and the parents were all afraid of him; they were all afraid that he'd hurt their children. He'd gotten a private tutor instead, someone who knew nothing about his condition. That had lasted for about a month, before Gaara had suddenly shifted into Shukaku. He had blacked out for the most part, but when he'd awoken, his father had been screaming at him. Gaara learned then just how dangerous he was; the tutor had stayed in the hospital for three months. Needless to say, he never came back.

Now he was basically taught by his brother and sister, Kankuro and Temari. They were afraid of him, of course, although Temari tried to act normal around him. She would even smile at him, occasionally. Kankuro was a different story, however. He didn't even try to act like he cared about Gaara. And for some reason, this hurt him a lot. The only relief that Gaara had was that his father was dead. He'd died in a car crash nearly a year ago. Temari was 18, so she continued to take care of him and Kankuro, who was 17. Gaara was only 15, so he had three years before he would be eligible to leave his home, if he was ever deemed fully sane. He was holding Temari down, he knew that; but that was just another way in which he was screwing up his 'family's' life.

Gaara felt his blood rushing to his head, and a strange feeling was entering his body. It happened every full moon; for some reason, Shukaku seemed to like the full moon. He always tried to get out the most on these nights, in any case. And at the moment, Gaara felt his mind leave him. He stood up on the flat roof and began spinning around, keeping his eyes on the moon as best he could. The dizzier he got, the faster he spun. Now he felt truly crazy.

"I HATE YOU!" He screamed at the moon. He heard the panicked sounds of footsteps from the floor below, but decided he was hearing things. Temari was at work, and Kankuro was probably at the theatre practicing with his marionettes. Gaara was alone.

"G-Gaara! What the hell are you doing!"

Surprise streaked through Gaara's mind, as he tried to process what he'd just heard. Again, he decided it was a voice, a voice that was there to taunt him and drive him even closer into madness.

"SHUT UP!" He screamed. "Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP! Leave me alone! I hate you! I…hate…" And very suddenly Gaara lost his balance and stopped; everything around him, however, continued to spin. Gaara didn't register that he was falling until he was caught in two strong, shaking arms. Gaara closed his eyes as he felt the world continue to spin 'round and 'round. When he finally opened them again, he saw a face looming above his. It took him a moment to recognize who it was, but when he did, he felt mildly surprised.

It was Kankuro. Kankuro, without his face paint, without his black hoodie, with only a pair of jeans on. It wasn't a Kankuro that Gaara saw very often. And the expression on his face was one of fear and…concern?

"Jesus Christ Gaara, what the hell were you doing? Do you know how close you were to falling off the fucking roof?" Kankuro questioned, his harsh voice holding an undertone of the fear. Gaara tried to narrow his eyes, so that he could concentrate on translating his brother's expression (he couldn't believe it was concern; it had to be something else), but found that this only blurred his vision even more. Then he registered that he hadn't hit the floor; he had fallen, so he should've hit the floor.

"You…did you catch…me…?" Gaara asked. Kankuro blinked in confusion, and the concern (as Gaara decided it must be) on his face grew.

"Gaara…geez, are you alright? You can't be that out of it, can you?"

Gaara didn't answer. His mind was still whirling, and he was trying desperately to process this information. Kankuro was concerned about him; Kankuro had caught him, saved him from falling; the voice undoubtedly belonged to him as well. Gaara closed his eyes again, then opened them half-way. His vision was slightly better; he could make out a few sharp lines on his brother's face, at least. He raised his hand slowly towards Kankuro's face, brushing his fingers over his brother's unexpectedly soft lips. He saw red spread across the surprised face, and he remembered that red meant a blush.

"Gaara…?" Kankuro's voice was soft now, unlike before, and it held an air of questioning. Gaara didn't say anything for a few moments, feeling the heat of Kankuro's shallow breathing on his fingers.

"You…you hate me…right?"

Kankuro seemed surprised again. "Hate you? Gaara…you're my brother…sometimes you scare me…and sometimes I don't like you…but I don't ever hate you."

Gaara blinked, focusing on Kankuro's lips as he pressed his fingers a little harder into the tender flesh. "Do you mean that…?"

"Yes."

There was no hesitation in the answer. Gaara stopped moving his fingers and stared at Kankuro. He studied every feature he could identify, the blurriness fading a little more. "You caught me…" Then he moved his hand so that it was behind Kankuro's head, and pulled him down so that their lips met. He felt Kankuro flinch, but he didn't resist the movement. The feel of Kankuro's soft, yet dry lips on his own was a new, strange sensation, one that sent small shockwaves throughout Gaara's body.

He knew that what he was doing was bad. Incest was both illegal and immoral; perverted. But Gaara couldn't feel anything other than the simple touch, and didn't really care that what he was doing was considered disgusting. He was already a monster anyways; besides, it was just a kiss…

Gaara pulled back first, his eyes and mind almost completely back to normal. Almost. He saw a strange, glazed express in Kankuro's eyes, and wordlessly stood up, offering a hand to his older brother. The brunette broke out of his daze, slightly flushed, and took the proffered hand.

"Nii-san…I'm sorry," Gaara murmured. He was looking at the moon again, so he didn't see the change in Kankuro's expression when he said two things that Kankuro had almost never heard from the younger boy before.

"It's…fine…" Kankuro said quietly. Then, in a louder voice, he said, "Let's go inside." Gaara nodded and followed Kankuro into their house. His blood no longer rushed to his head, and he couldn't feel Shukaku's rebellious presence at the moment. He decided that this was all because of Kankuro, and because of it, he said another thing that he almost never said.

"Thank you."


	2. Sleep

A/N: Honestly, I wasn't planning on doing a second chapter for this, but I got a review saying that I should, and that got the ball rolling.:) So here it is.

WARNING: GaaraxKankuro sandcest again. Possible foul language.

Disc.: Same.

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When Temari got home from work that night, she knew something was up between her brothers. She knew very well what tonight was, and yet Gaara was fully complacent with just about everything. He didn't glare at her as soon as she walked in the door, and didn't tell her to shut up when she asked him what he'd done that day. But what confused her and raised suspicions, was how he was interacting with Kankuro.

At dinner, Gaara had chosen a seat next to Kankuro, as opposed to his usual one across the table. Kankuro hadn't protested this in any way, not even flinching when Gaara had quietly sat down beside him. Temari hadn't said anything about it, keeping up her happy, slightly irritated routine as usual. She found that in order to understand Gaara, even to a small degree, it was best to watch in silence. And while she didn't understand it, she saw things that were barely able to piece themselves together in her mind. Like how Kankuro's eyes were filled with neither malice nor anger when they regarded their younger brother. And Temari also saw that Gaara was leaning slightly towards Kankuro; not very much, but enough so that she could tell it was intentional. Temari wondered; what had happened while she was at work?

Later that night, after Temari had fallen asleep while pondering all these things, Gaara was sitting on the couch, deciding that he didn't want to go on the roof again. He wasn't exactly bored, he was just somewhat restless. Yet at the same time, he felt like he could sit there forever without moving. Gaara thought of himself, and not incorrectly, as a contradiction. He heard footsteps coming into the living room, and he knew right away that it was Kankuro. They were too heavy to be Temari's, and also too graceful. Many wouldn't believe him if Gaara were to tell them that this older brother was a graceful person, but he was. A puppeteer always had to handle their puppets with the utmost care, lest they break or the strings get tangled. Thus, they all learned to move with grace and caution.

"Gaara? You okay?" The elder brother asked, sitting down uncertainly next to Gaara. The red-head's face was blank, making it impossible for him to read his emotions.

"I don't know…I think, somewhat, I'm okay," Gaara said quietly. Kankuro nodded, and Gaara suddenly turned to face him, his light aqua eyes almost glowing the dimly lit room.

"Did you know that 'yasha' means demon?" Gaara asked his brother, again in a quiet voice. Kankuro blinked, confused, before realizing what his brother meant. He winced, and Gaara's expectant eyes never left his face. Yashamaru…their uncle…that was whom Gaara was talking about, he was almost positive.

"Yes," Kankuro answered.

"So then why…why did he call me a monster…? Why was I the demon…?" Gaara asked, curling up with his knees tucked under his chin. It was a pose that Kankuro hadn't seen him in since they were both little, and it slightly worried him.

"Because mom died giving birth to you," he answered honestly. "Yashamaru was really attached to her, and I guess it hurt him too much…" None of them liked to speak about it; Yashamaru had taken care of Gaara until he was 6, always acting as though he truly loved Gaara. He called him his 'beloved nephew'. But then, one day, Yashamaru had gone crazy and committed suicide, although not before telling Gaara in the most polite, and utterly insane tone that any of them had ever heard, that he hated him and every shred of his existence. After that was when Gaara really started to change, becoming almost completely emotionally unreachable. Almost…

"Were you attached to her?" Gaara asked, his eyes studying Kankuro's face carefully. At least now his vision was clear, unlike before…

"…Yes," Kankuro said hesitantly. He had been two at the time of their mother's death, yet he could still remember small things, like her smile and her soft, loving voice. He still missed it, even now.

"So then why don't you hate me?" Gaara asked. "Back on the roof, you said you didn't hate me." Kankuro bit his lip, looking somewhat thoughtful.

"I guess I just don't. Like I said before, you're my brother, so I can't ever hate you. I'll always love you, no matter what." Gaara's eyed widened slightly at the last statement, but his emotionless expression was back again quickly.

"I see…so you…love me?" Gaara questioned. "Is that why you didn't stop me when I kissed you?"

Kankuro rubbed the back of his head, a strange expression on his face. "I…I…" He didn't know what to say exactly; he himself wasn't sure of the reason that he hadn't pushed Gaara away. Fear, maybe? Or was it love, just as Gaara said? Kankuro had a feeling that it was a little of both.

"Can you do that?" Gaara asked, his black-rimmed eyes serious, and slightly afraid. Of course, Kankuro couldn't see this fear, because he never even thought that Gaara could feel fear.

"Do what?"

"Kiss me."

Kankuro was surprised by the request; earlier, he had chalked the kiss up to Gaara's being completely out of it, but now here he was, asking him to kiss him. Nevermind that they were both guys, nevermind that they were brothers, it was just so…strange. But when he saw the hints of desperation in Gaara's eyes, he realized that this was a huge deal for the red-head. And if Kankuro could, he wanted to try and help, just a little. So he leaned over and pressed his lips against his younger brother's, feeling him start in momentary surprise before he relaxed.

It wasn't long before Kankuro carefully tried to deepen the kiss, running his tongue along Gaara's bottom lip. This startled the other teenager, causing him to open his mouth. Kankuro slipped his tongue in, and since his eyes were shut, he didn't see Gaara's open wide in shock. But as Kankuro continued, Gaara seemed to understand the kiss a little better, and his eyes slid shut again. Getting carried away in the moment, Kankuro lightly pushed Gaara down onto the couch cushions, one hand resting on his hip, the other resting behind his head.

However, Kankuro found that he strongly needed to breathe, and broke apart from his brother reluctantly, panting heavily. Gaara was gasping, his cheeks flushed slightly, and Kankuro wished he had a camera; he had never seen Gaara look like this before. Realizing that he was still on top of his younger brother, he sat up, allowing the more psychotic one to do the same. When they were both reoriented, Kankuro couldn't help but ask, "Was that good?" Gaara gave him an odd look.

"Yes." Kankuro chuckled slightly, and he noted that it had only been just this morning that he had been too afraid to even ask his brother what time it was.

"Good…well, I better be going to bed, since I have to go to the theatre tomorrow." He gently kissed his brother's forehead and got up, walking off to his bedroom quietly, with that graceful walk that only Gaara knew of. The boy stayed in the living room for a few more minutes, contemplating all that had just happened, and then he got up as well. But instead of going to the roof, or to his bedroom, he wandered into Kankuro's. Quietly, he slipped into bed next to his older brother, whom he felt tense slightly at the action. Then he loosened up and allowed Gaara to curl up next to his back, thinking sleepily that Gaara was pretty warm.

Gaara leaned his cheek against one of Kankuro's shoulder blades, his eyes drifting shut. Even if it was only for an hour, Gaara wanted to be able to sleep next to his brother, just like this.


	3. Theatre

A/N: Another chapter.:D I'll have to take this fic off my completed list…damn. I get so easily swayed by reviews like this…ah, and I couldn't help but add a little SasoxDei…they're cute too!

Disc.: Same.

WARNING: Same.

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Gaara had been lucky that night; no nightmares, no evil voices screaming that they would kill him, and a full two hours of sleep. Gaara was beginning to wonder if there was a blue moon, since so many rarities had happened overnight. But when he did awake, he still lay in bed next to his brother, unwilling to move away from the warmth and comfort that the older boy's body gave. He listened to Kankuro's steady breathing, and felt oddly relaxed because of it.

He was awake for while, he didn't know how long, before Kankuro finally opened his eyes with a yawn.

"Good morning," Gaara murmured. Kankuro looked at him sleepily, a drowsy smile on his face.

"Morning Gaara." Kankuro forced himself to get off his bed and onto his feet, going into his closet. Gaara could hear the rustle of clothing as Kankuro changed into his theatre outfit, which consisted of black pants and a black hoodie, along with fingerless black gloves. There was also a symbol on the front of his hoodie, a circle dividing in half, one part red, the other part yellow. Gaara had never been curious before, but now he wondered what the circle meant. So when Kankuro returned, Gaara asked him.

"Oh, this? It just signifies what theatre group I'm in," he said nonchalantly. He continued getting ready, going to his mirror with a jar of purple face paint. Gaara frowned slightly.

"Why do you wear that paint?"

"Because it's a tradition for puppeteers."

"Does anyone else do it?"

Kankuro paused for a moment. "No, not really. I mean, a few people, but not everyone. I just really like the tradition, that's all."

"Oh," Gaara said. He didn't fully understand, but that didn't particularly matter. He was staring at his hands, deep in thought. On his wrists were many scars where he'd cut himself open, just to watch the blood seep down his arms. For some reason, probably because Shukaku liked it, Gaara had a strange fascination with blood. But Temari had found out about his habits once, and had pleaded with him to quit; she had even been crying. That was almost a year ago, and he had only cut himself a few times since then, trying to adhere to his sister's request. However, it had ended up making him more agitated, and he was more liable to revert to Shukaku's personality around those periods of times.

Frowning, Gaara looked back up at his brother, who was putting the finishing touches on his paint, and hesitantly asked, "Can I come with you to the theatre?" Kankuro was silent for a few moments, putting on the last of his makeup and then pulling his hood over his head. He grabbed Karasu, his puppet, and then turned and smiled at Gaara.

"Sure, why not?" Gaara's lips twitched slightly, but then his normal expression returned, and he nodded.

"I'll go change," he said. He walked into his room and picked out an outfit that consisted of a brown t-shirt, black jeans, and a black trench coat over it all. He ran a comb through his hair, although it did nothing for his tangled crimson locks. When Gaara walked out of his room, Kankuro was leaning against the front door, waiting.

"Ready?" He asked. Gaara nodded, and they both headed out the front door. They only owned one car, and Temari had to use it to get to work, so they ended up walking to the theatre, which, luckily, was only about 10 minutes away. On the way there, they two brothers were mostly silent; it wasn't awkward…actually, it was somewhat comfortable. But when they were about 4 minutes or so away, Kankuro turned to his brother quizzically and asked, "So why did you want to come with me?" Gaara looked at him for a moment with his piercing eyes, then turned his gaze back to the ground.

"I…I guess I just…wanted to. I didn't feel like…being alone," Gaara said. Kankuro raised an eyebrow, but smiled.

"Well, that's cool. You know, I'm glad you're coming with me. Maybe I can introduce you to Sasori-sensei while we're there."

"Sasori-sensei…?"

"Yeah. He's a genius with puppets, and he's the one who made Karasu," Kankuro said animatedly. Gaara listened to his brother silently, and although it didn't show, he was slightly interested. "He's kind of sarcastic a lot, and he can be a little weird sometimes, but he's pretty cool for the most part. The really weird one is Deidara-san."

"Who?" Gaara questioned as they entered the theatre.

"You'll see," Kankuro said. He grabbed one of Gaara's wrists and began dragging him to the front stage, a large grin on his face. Gaara couldn't help but smile a little at his brother's enthusiasm, and sometimes he wondered who was really the older one. When they reached the stage, there were a few people there; the one Kankuro lead Gaara to was surprisingly young looking, with crimson hair only a few shades lighter than Gaara's, and eyes of the same color. He wore a black trench coat similar to Gaara's, although he wore his closed as opposed to open. His eyes were half-lidded, making him look tired.

"Hello Kankuro. I see you've brought a friend…?"

"My brother," Kankuro corrected. "This is Gaara; Gaara, this is Sasori-sensei."

Sasori stuck out his hand, a lazy half smile on his face. "Nice to meet you Gaara."

"Same," Gaara replied uncomfortably. He disliked being around people he didn't know, but he felt a little more at ease knowing that Kankuro was right beside him.

"Sasori-danna!" Came a slightly feminine voice. Gaara moved just in time to avoid having Sasori fall into him, as the crimson haired puppeteer stumbled forward from the force now being applied to his back.

"That's Deidara," Kankuro whispered. Gaara knew then what his brother had meant by weird. The man, or at least, whom Gaara assumed to be a man, had yellow blonde hair that was half tied up in an odd ponytail, and half hanging down his neck. He had extremely long bangs that covered his left eye, and his visible eye was a vibrant shade of blue. He wore a black t-shirt over a long sleeved mesh shirt, and had on a pair of black jeans; but what puzzled Gaara the most was the suffix he'd used for Sasori.

"Are they…married…?" Gaara asked Kankuro. Kankuro chuckled a little.

"Nah; but they're dating. Sasori-sensei always lets him call him that anyways," Kankuro answered. Sasori was rolling his eyes, and Deidara ceased his attempt to hug the man from behind, walking into a better viewing range. He smiled brightly and said,

"Hey Kankuro-kun! Who's your friend, yeah?"

"This is my brother, Gaara. Gaara, this is-"

"I'm Deidara, yeah! How are you?" The blonde said cheerfully.

"Fine," Gaara answered, a little unnerved by Deidara's strange behavior.

"Ummm, are you here to learn how to use marionettes too, yeah?" Deidara asked curiously, his arms twisting around Sasori's neck, who gave no indication of minding the public displays of affection.

"No, I'm just here to watch Kankuro," Gaara answered uneasily. Deidara smirked, looking up at Sasori with a grin.

"Ha! You know," he said, looking back at Gaara with a sly look, "I bet you could appreciate real art, yeah?" Sasori rolled his eyes, running a hand through his hair.

"Not this again…"

"Awww, come on danna, it's just a little friendly competition," Deidara said in a semi-pleading voice. Sasori shook his head with a slight sigh.

"Right, sure."

"What are they talking about?" Gaara asked in mild confusion.

"Nnnn, well, Sasori-sensei and Deidara-san have veeery different opinions on art, so let's just leave it at that," his brother answered. At that moment, Sasori strode towards the center of the stage, Deidara following after him.

"Okay everyone, class begins now. Get out your marionettes, and let's see how much you've been practicing."

"Well, that's my cue to go. Watch me, huh?" Kankuro said with a wink. Gaara nodded and walked off stage, going to sit in the audience seats. There were only about 2 or 3 other people watching, so it was blissfully quiet, save for the occasional admonition or quick tip from Sasori, and the usually joking comments from Deidara. As Gaara watched Kankuro moved, he found it amazing how his brother was so skilled at it; he'd been practicing with puppets since he was about 11; that meant that it had been 6 years, so it was now wonder that he was so good. Gaara thought that he should probably come and watch Kankuro more often.

Finally, around 3 in the afternoon, Sasori told everyone that it was time to stop. Personally, Gaara wouldn't have minded if it had gone on for just a little longer, but was also somewhat happy when Kankuro finally came down and, grinning, clapped a hand on his shoulder.

"Time to leave."

"Right."

The cool, fall air had been refreshing when they'd first walked out of the theatre, having been in the heated building so long. It was overcast that day, which Gaara was thankful for, since he would've really disliked having to shield his eyes from the sun. As they walked along, Gaara felt Kankuro's hand grab his, lacing their fingers together. Gaara looked at him in slight alarm, and Kankuro only smiled and squeezed his hand gently. Gaara looked away, a light pink tinge crossing his cheeks. How was it that he could stand Kankuro kissing him, but that he felt embarrassed when they held hands?

By the time they reached their small house, Gaara felt a little reluctant to let go of Kankuro's hand. But reminding himself that he wasn't a child, he freed his hand from Kankuro's and entered their home.

"Hey, Gaara, I'm going to watch some T.V….want to watch with me?" Kankuro offered. Gaara looked at him, blinked, then nodded. He quickly turned away and said that he needed to put his coat away first, walking quickly into his room. Really though, he was just trying to hide the upward-turned corners of his, signifying one of his rare, true smiles.


	4. Worry

A/N: Hello once again everyone, and welcome to the fourth chapter! I'm so glad that you're all enjoying this so far.:D And authoraisarete, that's awesome! It makes me happy to hear that you want to have a friend read this.:3 Thanks to all my reviewers, though! And if you guys have any ideas on where this story should go, go ahead and tell me in a review; I'd be more then happy to try and work with one of your ideas. By the way, I changed Shika's age so that it fit with Temari's. I don't have a problem with the age difference, it would just be too difficult to keep it like that with the way I need this to go.

Disc: Same.

WARNING: Sandcest, SasoDei, Yaoi. Don't like, don't read.

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When Gaara returned to the living room, Kankuro was already sitting on the couch, watching some random show. Gaara awkwardly walked over to him and sat down beside him, albeit a little stiffly. Kankuro noticed this and frowned.

"You okay?" He asked. Gaara turned towards his brother and nodded, his mouth tugged down slightly in a frown.

"Yes…I'm fine. I'm just not used to this…spending time with people," Gaara said. Kankuro smiled, slinging his arm around his brother's shoulders affectionately.

"Well then, you'll have to start some time, right? And who better to spend time with then your big brother?" Kankuro teased. Gaara tilted his head slightly, nodding.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," he said quietly. Kankuro chuckled, ruffling Gaara's hair. Gaara flinched, and Kankuro frowned slightly.

"Come on Gaara, lighten up a bit. I promise I don't bite," Kankuro said. Gaara looked at him, his expression unreadable.

"What if I want you to?"

Kankuro stared at his younger brother, mouth agape. There was _no_ _way _that Gaara had just said that. He must have been hearing things…

"Gaara…" Gaara shook his head, a slight smirk on his face.

"What are we watching?" The redhead asked, turning his attention to the TV. Kankuro, seeming to remember what they were supposed to be doing, snapped out of whatever thoughts he'd been having and looked thoughtfully at the television.

"Um…I'm not sure, exactly. It's supposed to be a horror movie; Friday the 13th," Kankuro said, checking the guide. Gaara nodded, not bothering to ask what it was about. He didn't mind horror movies, and this one in particular wasn't scary; predictable deaths, non-interesting villain…but there was a _lot_ of blood. Blood was one of the triggers for Shukaku, and Gaara could feel his head beginning to throb.

"Gaara? What's the matter?" Kankuro asked in concern, watching as his brother clutched at his head.

"Ah…he…_he's_ trying to get out…" Gaara grit his teeth, trying desperately to push his other personality back. Kankuro grabbed his brother's shoulders in alarm, pulling him close. However, Gaara's features slowly changed, becoming sharper, more violent, and his eyes faded from aqua to a sickly yellowish-green. Instantly, Shukaku pushed Kankuro back, pinning him down with one hand, clutching his throat with the other.

"Do you know how fucking annoying you are?" He breathed harshly. Kankuro felt fear course through him, but he kept his mouth shut.

"Every single time that I tried to get out last night, and today, I couldn't. It was _your_ fault, you little shit." His fingers tightened, and Kankuro gagged as breathing became a harder and harder task.

"Well now, I can get rid of you, you little pest. You never should have even tried to help him." A sick, evil smile was on his face, and he squeezed tighter as Kankuro's face turned deep red from lack of oxygen. Just then, Temari walked in the door.

"Kankuro, Gaara, I'm ho- Oh, my god!" Instantly, she dropped everything she was carrying and ran over to her brothers. She grabbed Shukaku by the shoulders and wrenched him off, using one of her arms to restrain him by pressing the back of his body against her, the bend of her elbow up against his throat, choking him in almost the same way he'd tried to do to Kankuro. She used her other hand to dig in her coat pocket for a morphine shot, which she was allowed to give Gaara when he became Shukaku.

"Let the fuck GO of me you stupid bitch!" Shukaku screamed, kicking and scratching her arm until it bled. She quickly pulled out the needle and stuck it into his arm. Luckily, she hit a vein, and within minutes, his struggles became weaker and weaker, until they finally stopped as Gaara slumped in her arms.

"Thank god," she whispered. Then she set him down and rushed over to Kankuro, who was just barely sitting up. "Oh god, Kankuro, are you alright? Did he break anything?"

Kankuro shook his head, wheezing. "No…tried to choke…me…"

Temari's eyes widened in fear; this wasn't the first time Shukaku had ever become violent, of course, but it WAS the first time he'd ever attacked Kankuro.

"Did he say why he did it?" She questioned. He shook his head, finding it incredibly painful to speak.

"Damn," she muttered under her breath. "And he hadn't been doing bad, either…" If she hadn't walked in the door just now, what might have happened? Would Kankuro be…? She shut her eyes tight, unwilling to think about it. It would kill her if either of her little brothers died.

"I'm…okay, Temari, really," Kankuro said as his breathing became a little less ragged. He reached out and hugged her, and she held him tightly against her chest, tears spilling down her cheeks.

"Jesus Kankuro, you could have died! What if I hadn't been here? Then what, huh? I was so scared! I don't want either of you to ever get hurt!" Temari continued ranting for a few more minutes and Kankuro let her; it wasn't often that she got emotional, or at least, not this much so. If it made her feel better, he'd let her talk as much as he wanted. The hug felt nice, anyways…it reminded him of their mother.

"I'm sorry," he said hoarsely. Temari shook her head and finally let go of him, wiping her red-rimmed eyes.

"It's not your fault," she said shortly, hiccupping slightly. Then she turned and looked at her youngest brother, who still lay motionless on the floor in his drug-induced sleep.

"I'll carry him to his bed," she stated quietly, standing up and walking over to him. She was stopped, however, when Kankuro grabbed her ankle, looking at her with pleading, dark green eyes.

"I'm going to take him into my room…instead. I want to watch him and make sure he's okay," Kankuro said, coughing slightly at the end of his sentence. Temari bit her lip.

"Kankuro…no, it's too dangerous. He just tried to strangle you!"

The puppeteer refused to give up, however. "I don't care. He probably won't be in that personality when he wakes up anyways."

"And what if he is?" Temari questioned angrily. "Then what?"

"Give me a morphine needle if you have to; I want him to stay with me," Kankuro persisted. Temari was about to snap out another response, but just then, the doorbell rang. With a frustrated noise, Temari shouted, "I'm coming", and then looked back at Kankuro. She wordlessly handed him a hypodermic needle and went to answer the door. Kankuro sighed in relief and tucked the needle into the pocket of his sweatshirt, then bent over and picked up his sleeping brother.

The red head wasn't at all heavy, which Kankuro was thankful for as he took him into his room. Laying Gaara down the bed, Kankuro sighed, gingerly raising his hand to his neck. He winced; it hurt like hell. Deciding to ignore the bruising limb, he reached over and brushed Gaara's hair back, revealing darkened eyelids that had come from so many years of insomnia. For now, he'd just have to wait for his younger brother to wake up; it would be awhile, considering that he was under the influence of morphine, but Kankuro was willing to wake. He wanted- no, he _needed_- to make sure that Gaara was okay.

Whatever was wrong with Kankuro, it was probably a hundred times worse for Gaara.

-----------------

"Shikamaru?" Temari said in surprise. Sure enough, her lazy-ass boyfriend was standing in the doorway, leaning casually against the frame.

"Hey," was his simple reply. "Do you know how troublesome it is to get to your house sometimes? The traffic damn near had me asleep, it was so slow." Temari scowled, crossing her arms.

"Shika, I'm not in the mood for this. I'm having a rough night," the pig-tailed female said. Shikamaru raised an eyebrow, and his normal frown deepened a little.

"Really? What happened? Is Tayuya over-working you again?" Temari sighed.

"No, it's not Tayuya. It's…well, screw it, just get inside and I'll tell you." She opened the door more and moved aside, giving her long time boyfriend access to the hallway. He walked in relatively fast, his hands in his pockets as he instantly made his way to the living room. Temari shut and locked the door, then followed after him, arms crossed once again, this time in nervousness. The two sat down on the couch and Shikamaru looked at her with a serious expression on his face.

"Now, what is it?"

"It's Gaara…he had an episode today, and he nearly strangled Kankuro. I walked in just in time, thank god, but now I'm scared. What if he tried it again while I'm not home? I can't risk Kankuro getting hurt…but," Temari paused, closing her eyes sadly. "I can't bear to send Gaara to a mental hospital, either. He's my little brother, and I love him; Kankuro too. I'm just so confused!" She threw her hands up at the last statement, illustrating her point. Shikamaru sighed and placed an arm around the blonde, holding her to his chest while she started crying again. Temari was normally a very strong woman who rarely cried, so seeing this worried him. He'd known Temari since they were both twelve, so he was very familiar with her family's conditions, including Gaara's 'sickness'. And right now, he knew that he had to be strong for the both of them, even if he was worried himself.

"Jeez, it's going to be okay Temari," he said in the most comforting voice he could manage. "You're all so troublesome…but I promise, I'll help in any way that I can." Temari looked up at him, her dark blue eyes still leaking tears, and he leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. "It'll all be okay, alright?" She didn't respond for a while, and he just held her. Finally, she whispered,

"Thanks, Shikamaru. I don't know what I'd do without you sometimes…I love you." Shikamaru smirked, kissing the top of her head.

"As troublesome as you can be sometimes, I love you too, Temari." The two slowly drifted off to sleep on the couch, Temari temporarily forgetting all her problems in the arms of the man she loved.


	5. Love

A/N: Good evening everyone! Thanks again for all your reviews! You guys are seriously starting to make me blush though. :P It surprises me that I'm already on the fifth chapter of a story that was supposed to be a one shot, but really, I enjoy writing this, and as long as I have people reading it, it's worth it. And I apologize for taking so long; my plot bunny temporarily ran away on me. But I got it back, so it's all good now.

And authoraisete, you must have invaded my mind at the time! lol, I had such a hard time at that part- I was stuck with Kankuro saying that he wouldn't bite. I almost changed the line, until I thought up the response from Gaara, and then I just had to put in! X3 And I hadn't been expecting Shukaku either…but then it struck me, and I felt compelled to write that scene down. Ahaha, I know, Friday the 13th is a stupid movie…but it's so stupid that it made me laugh. :D

Disc.: I don't own Naruto, it belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

WARNING: Sandcest, SasoDei, yaoi. Don't like, don't read.

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When Gaara awoke the next morning, the first thing he noticed was how blurry everything was. At first, he tried to blink it away, but after it refused to leave him, he realized that he had been drugged. He inwardly winced at this; being drugged meant he had switched. He couldn't remember clearly, but he was almost positive that Kankuro had been with him when it happened. Then, as if on cue, a soft voice said,

"Gaara?"

The teen tried to turn his head to face the voice, but his movements were sluggish. Another side effect of the drugs, he was sure. Kankuro seemed to realize this, and shifted so that his brother could see his face. It was etched with relief, and slight worry.

"Yeah?" Gaara croaked out, his tongue feelings clumsy and large. Kankuro sighed, relieved that it was his brother, and said,

"Just making sure…I'm glad you're awake. It's been a whole day already." Gaara's eyes widened, which did not help the blurriness.

"A whole…how much did Temari give me?" He could feel the sudden uneasiness, and he frowned. "What? What's wrong?"

"She gave you a whole shot of it," Kankuro said. But Gaara knew that that wasn't the whole story; he could hear it in his voice.

"What else is it?" he demanded sternly.

"You…when you changed, he tried to strangle me." Gaara's eyes widened, and despite the heavy feeling in his mind, he shot straight up.

"W-What? I tried to…" Gaara trailed off, horrorstruck. Had he really tried to kill his own brother? He knew that when he changed, he became a completely different person, but he had never attacked his family before. Not even their father, when he'd still been around. Why would Shukaku try to kill Kankuro? What could he possibly gain from it?

"Gaara, it wasn't your fault, so don't-"

"What did he say?" Gaara asked, cutting him off. The puppeteer frowned, running a hand through his hair.

"That doesn't matter Gaara, you're back now so-"

"_What did he say_?" The redhead asked again, getting a sinking feeling in his stomach. If Kankuro was trying to avoid the subject, then it must have been worse than he thought.

Finally, Kankuro relented. "He…he said that I was annoying, and that he wanted to get rid of me."

"What else?"

"Nothing," Kankuro said, trying to sound as truthful as possible. He didn't want Gaara to feel worse than he already did. But the younger male seemed to know he was lying, because he fixed Kankuro with a piercing stare.

"He wouldn't just say that…there had to have been a reason, or something. What was it?"

The brunette bit his lip, frowning. "He said…that I never should have tried to help you." Gaara's eyes widened and he looked down, staring at his hands. Kankuro noticed with a pang that he was trembling.

"So it was my fault…? Because of me, you almost died…?" He looked back up at Kankuro, eyes full of pain, fear, and accusation. "Then why the hell are you here! You could have _died_, and it was because of me! How can you stand to be near me!" In response, Kankuro pulled Gaara into a tight embrace, startling the redhead. Seconds after, though, he began to struggle, trying desperately to push himself out of the taller boy's arms.

"Let go! Let go of me!" he shouted. Kankuro only hugged him tighter.

"No! Gaara, listen to me! It's not your fault, and I _want_ to be near you, so quit trying to push me away!" Gaara's struggles weakened, and he looked at Kankuro, disbelief all over his face.

"Why?" he asked. "I don't get it!"

"Because," Kankuro murmured. "You're my brother, and I love you." He pressed his lips lightly against Gaara's for a few moments before pulling away, looking his brother in the eyes. The emotions in them were clearly visible; first, there was surprise, then sadness, and then…

"Kankuro…I…I …" Gaara was trying to choke out a response, but the words wouldn't come to him. He wasn't crying yet, but he felt damn close to it; how could he tell Kankuro that he loved him? Gaara had never told anyone that he loved them, not since Yashamaru died. And he'd never loved anyone like this, either. It hurt, but it also brought him a strange sense of relief…but that wasn't right. He shouldn't be _relieved_ when the one he loved was his older brother.

He was brought out of his thoughts when Kankuro leaned down and kissed Gaara again, this time with no intention of immediately pulling away. The redhead froze for a few moments before he responded, although no with a sense of guilt. This was his fault; he had initiated the first kiss, and he'd asked for the second. How could he be so stupid? It didn't matter that he was a monster, because Kankuro wasn't, and yet he was dragging him down with this…whatever it was.

Gaara reluctantly pulled away, staring into Kankuro's dark green eyes. "Kankuro, we can't. I don't- I can't do this to you. I'm not going to." Kankuro, however, refused to let go of him, returning Gaara's gaze evenly.

"And what, exactly, are you doing to me?"

"I'm forcing you into-"

"You're not _forcing_ me into anything, Gaara," Kankuro said, cutting him off. "If I didn't want you to kiss me, if I didn't want to kiss you, I wouldn't."

Gaara's eyes narrowed. "You're afraid of me. I know you are, to some degree. And I know that you'd do anything I asked of you short of murder, because you'd be too afraid _not_ to." It hurt him to speak those words, because he hated being reminded of the fact that his siblings feared him and his occasional psychotic outbursts.

"Yeah, that is true, _to some degree_. Christ Gaara, I wouldn't commit acts of incest with you just because I was afraid of you! You forget what I told you the other night- I do love you, and I always have. Sometimes I didn't like you, and I definitely didn't like it when you switched, but I never stopped loving you. Temari feels the same way," Kankuro said sternly. Gaara shook his head, and his eyes held a touch of sadness as he said the next words.

"No, it's different. The way Temari feels about me and the way you feel about me are almost completely different. She cares about me like sisters are supposed to care about their brothers. But you…the love you're talking about, that you feel…it's the kind that we aren't supposed to have. Normal brothers aren't supposed to love each other like that." Kankuro laughed wryly.

"Gaara, since when has our family ever been normal?" Gaara frowned impatiently, disliking the joking tone in his brother's voice.

"That's not the point and you know it. My point is that I don't want to hurt you by having a…a relationship with you!" Shouted the irate redhead. Kankuro sighed, shaking his head in a way that was very similar to what Gaara had done just a minute ago.

"Then why did you kiss me in the first place? Yesterday, and the day before- you sure as hell weren't protesting then," the brunette remarked. Gaara's face became flushed and he narrowed his eyes in a glare.

"I wasn't thinking straight then. But after I attacked you-"

"It wasn't you who attacked me!"

"- I realized that if I tried to be with you like that, I'd only end up hurting you. I don't want anyone I love to die!" He was starting to tremble badly, and Kankuro gently kissed his forehead, although he was very anxious. He hadn't seen Gaara cry since he was six, and the way things were going now, his younger brother seemed to be on the verge of tears.

"Gaara," he whispered soothingly. "I won't die. I can take care of myself against Shukaku, so don't worry. As for us…let's just take things one step at a time, okay? Our relationship is so new; let's give it a chance, please?"

Gaara hesitated, and then he slowly began to nod. "Okay…" The older of the two smiled, and he leaned down and captured the other's lips in a light, simple kiss, which he was relieved to have returned. But then he remembered something, and he pulled away in alarm.

"Oh shit, what time is it?" Kankuro asked, panicked. Gaara blinked and looked at the alarm clock beside Kankuro's bed.

"4:47…why?" Kankuro practically leapt off the bed and into his closet, leaving a confused Gaara on his bed.

"Damnit, I'm gonna be late! Damn, damn, damn!" He came rushing out of the closet in a flash, hurrying over to his dresser to apply his face paint.

"I thought you had theatre in the morning," Gaara said, a questioning tone in his voice. Kankuro was putting on the finishing touches as he gave a quick answer.

"No, on Wednesdays and Fridays I have night classes." The teen grabbed Karasu and returned to his bed to give Gaara a quick peck on the cheek. "See you in a little while."

"Bye," Gaara said, although he wasn't sure if Kankuro had heard him. With a sigh, the redhead lay down, wincing as he felt a slight pain his head, foreshadowing a headache that he was sure would come. Yet for some odd reason, he felt the strangest urge to smile.

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Luckily, Kankuro, who had ran nearly the entire way to the theatre, made it just in time. He nearly collapsed upon entering the building, but it was worth it to not be late. Sasori-sensei seemed to really dislike tardiness. He was panting as he made his way up to the stage, and Sasori raised his eyebrows when he saw his appearance.

"Were you running a marathon or something?" he asked. Kankuro shook his head weakly and took his place on the stage, and Sasori started the class.

All throughout his practice, however, Kankuro got an eerie feeling that Sasori was watching him. It also made him a little nervous, though he tried hard to keep from making many mistakes. When the class was over, Sasori called him aside. Filled with dread, the brunette went over to his teacher, although he was a little grateful that he could at least breathe normally again.

"Do you need anything, Sasori-sensei?" Kankuro asked anxiously.

"Not really," the older man said. "I just wanted to tell you that you need to be careful." Kankuro blinked, bewildered.

"What do you mean? With Kara-"

"No," Sasori cut off. "With your brother." A wave of fear washed over the younger puppeteer, and he swallowed hard.

"H-How did you know about that?"

"I could see it in your eyes, both of yours, when you brought him here yesterday," Sasori stated simply. "And I'm warning you now to be careful, because if anyone else finds out, you could both be in a lot of trouble."

"So, you're not going to turn us in?" Kankuro asked, both surprised and relieved.

Sasori gave him a strange look. "Why would I do that? I have nothing to gain by it."

"But it's against the law," Kankuro stammered, baffled. Sasori simply shrugged, as if to say 'I don't care'.

Kankuro frowned, looking at his teacher uneasily. "You…you don't think it's wrong?"

Sasori raised an eyebrow. "Me? No, not really. But then, I'm not exactly known for making good moral choices, so my opinion isn't all that important." Kankuro sighed.

"Well, it makes me feel better, at least," he said. The corners of Sasori's mouth lifted into a half smile, and he shrugged again.

"I don't think it's wrong either, yeah! I think it's cute!"

Both Kankuro and Sasori turned around, only to come face to face with a grinning Deidara.

"Deidara, were you eavesdropping again?" Sasori asked in irritation. Not at all abashed, the blonde nodded.

"Uh-huh! Gaa-chan and Kankuro-kun do make a cute couple, yeah. You think so too, right danna?" he said cheerfully. Sasori narrowed his eyes and turned to Kankuro.

"I'm sorry about this. You know how Deidara is." Kankuro nodded, although he was a little pale. Deidara wasn't exactly known for being quiet about things…what if he let slip about his and Gaara's relationship?

"Hey, I'm right here, yeah!" Then, as if he read Kankuro's mind, Deidara turned to the worried puppeteer and winked. "Don't worry Kankuro-kun, I won't tell anyone! I'm not as stupid as I look, yeah." Then he looked back at Sasori. "I'll be waiting outside, okay?" When Sasori gave a nod of acknowledgement, Deidara gave Kankuro a last cheerful wave, then turned and left, going out the right wing exit.

"You don't need to worry, Kankuro. Deidara _is_ good at keeping secrets, hard as it may be to believe," Sasori said, running a hand through his hair and a wry smile crossed his face. "He was able to keep our relationship a secret for two years, in any case." Kankuro's eyes widened in surprise; Deidara, who seemed to not be able to keep his hands off Sasori for more than a few minutes, had kept his and Sasori's relationship a secret for _two years_?

Sasori's smile became amused when he saw the expression of disbelief on his student's face. "Yeah, hard to believe, isn't it? But he did, and I've always been grateful for it."

"Um, Sasori-sensei, if you don't mind me asking," Kankuro said, shifting uncomfortably. "Why did he have to keep it a secret?"

"Because we were both 16 when we started dating, and at the time, I obviously still lived with my parents. They were both very homophobic, and I have no doubt that they would have kicked me out, or worse, if they'd found out that I was in a relationship with another guy," he stated, and though his tone sounded casual enough, there was a slight bitter edge to his words. "So Deidara and I decided to keep it a secret until we turned 18, when I was able to move out."

"Did you ever tell your parents?" Kankuro asked curiously. Sasori laughed slightly, nodding.

"Yes, I did. After I'd gotten all my things out of the house and moved into mine and Dei's apartment, I called them up and told them."

"What did they do?"

"My mother cried and screamed at me, and my father told me in no uncertain terms that I was being disowned."

Kankuro was shocked; all that just because Sasori was gay? "Didn't that upset you?" he asked. Sasori shook his head, tilting his head back to look at the ceiling.

"No, not really. I was never all that close to my parents in the first place," Sasori said nonchalantly. His eyes flickered towards the exit that Deidara had gone through, and he said, "Deidara's probably getting impatient; I better get going."

"O-Okay, see you later then, Sasori-sensei." The crimson-haired man nodded, and he offered one last, lazy smile.

"Don't worry too much, alright? Luckily for you, not all people are quite as perceptive as I am, nor as nosy as Deidara, so as long as you're careful, you'll be in the clear. Okay?" Kankuro smiled gratefully, nodding as he bent down to pick up Karasu.

"Right. Thanks, sensei," he murmured.

"Any time." He began to walk off the stage, and Kankuro went in the opposite direction, suddenly feeling as though a small weight had been lifted off his mind.


	6. Engaged

A/N: Woot, another chapter! This is officially my longest ongoing fic (my drabbles series don't count)! I love writing this so much…I pushed myself into insomnia to finish this chapter, just so that I could get all the ideas down before I lost them. And along with reviews, I found myself being greatly inspired by music as I wrote this! 'Enter Sandman' by Metallica and 'Orochimaru's Theme' were the two songs I listened to most (Much as I hate the snake bastard, he has an AWESOME theme). Also, 'Vanilla' by Gackt was a pretty big one at one point. ;P Anywho, thanks so much to all reviewers! You don't know how happy you guys make me. :D

WARNING: Sandcest, SasoDei, yaoi. Don't like, don't read.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto; it belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

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When Kankuro got home, he found Gaara waiting for him on the couch, watching what looked to be music videos on television. Smiling, he set Karasu down beside the door and walked up behind the couch, leaning over it and draping his arms over his younger brother's shoulders.

"I'm home," he said. Gaara snorted, but leaned into the older boy's arms nonetheless.

"Obviously."

"So, are you feeling better?" Kankuro's voice was a little more serious this time, and he tightened the loose hug. Gaara gave a smile sigh, nodding an affirmative.

"Yes, I am." He carefully got up on his knees and turned around, wrapping his arms around Kankuro's neck. Resting his head against the other boy's shoulder, Gaara sighed. They stayed like that for a few moments, each enjoying the feel of the embrace. Then Kankuro shifted so that his lips were beside Gaara's ear, making the redhead twitch.

"Temari'll be home in a few minutes," he said, slight amusement in his voice. Gaara nodded, pulling away, albeit somewhat reluctantly.

"How did your practice go today?" he asked quietly. Kankuro grinned, ruffling Gaara's hair.

"Pretty good, actually. I had an interesting talk with Sasori-sensei," the brunette responded. "I'll take you to practice with me tomorrow, if you want." Gaara nodded, although his eyes were curious now.

"What did you talk abou-"

"Gaara, Kankuro! I'm back!" Both teens looked at the door that their older sister had just walked through, and they could tell that she was in a good mood. When she saw the two of them together, and definitely not trying to kill each other, the smile on her face brightened even more. It almost worried Kankuro, because usually, Temari was never this happy unless she had gotten a raise or something.

"Hey sis, you haven't been taking anything, have you?" he asked, only half-joking. Temari laughed, and even Gaara could tell that there was something up with her; usually Kankuro's smart-ass comments landed him a solid thwack on the head.

"No, I haven't. But oh god, today is just so perfect! I'm so happy that I could sing!" Kankuro paled at the thought.

"Please don't," he half begged. Gaara nearly sniggered, although he was in silent agreement with his brother. Temari could shatter glass when she sang, and not because she was good at it.

"Oh shut up," the blonde said good-naturedly. She had kicked off her work shoes and was now in the kitchen, causing a loud raucous as she got out the pots and pans. Kankuro looked at Gaara and raised an eyebrow; Temari often was too tired to cook when she came home. Finally, his curiosity getting the better of him, Kankuro asked,

"So, what is it that's got you all worked up?" Temari turned to look at him, flashing her brightest grin.

"Shikamaru asked me to marry him." Gaara blinked, and Kankuro's jaw dropped.

"Are you serious?"

"Yep! He asked me today, right after I got off work. See?" She held up her left hand, and as both boys observed, a glittering diamond ring was on her ring finger. Neither of them was exactly shocked about the fact that she was engaged; it was more the fact that Shikamaru had _finally_ gotten around to asking. But Kankuro quickly recovered from his surprise, walking over to his sister and giving her a quick, tight hug, beaming at her when he pulled away.

"That's great Temari. I'm happy for you sis, really."

"Congratulations," Gaara said, giving Temari the slightest of smiles. Tears were welling up in her eyes, and she firmly said,

"Get over here Gaara." A little startled, Gaara complied, going into the kitchen and standing by his siblings. To his surprise, Temari pulled both him and Kankuro into a bone-crushing hug, kissing the tops of their heads. It was one of the most touching moments that the three siblings had shared since they were kids, and none of them was willing to be the first to break it up. Eventually, however, Temari let go of them, sniffling slightly as she turned back to her pots, filling them with water.

"Thanks you guys. Now, go ahead and go to your rooms for now. Shikamaru's coming over for dinner, and I want this to be good, so I can't have any distractions, okay?"

"Sure thing Temari," Kankuro replied easily. He and Gaara went to his room just as Temari began to hum the tune to some happy-sounding song.

"She's really happy," Gaara said softly, rubbing his shoulder where Temari had squeezed him. Kankuro nodded, unable to keep the grin off his face.

"Isn't she? It's great…she deserves more happiness. Speaking of, when Shikamaru comes over tonight, I'm gonna have to talk to him." Gaara looked at him, crossing his arms as he sat down on his brother's bed.

"Oh? Why?" Kankuro smirked, flopping down on the bed next to the other teen.

"To threaten him, of course. Tell him that if he ever hurts Temari, I'll kill him, or something along those lines. You know, normal brotherly stuff," the brunette said, waving a hand around in the air, as if to emphasize his point.

"I happen to remember someone telling me that we weren't normal brothers," Gaara said flatly. The older boy rolled his eyes and ruffled Gaara's hair.

"Okay, fine. I'll just tell him that I'll torture him very slowly and painfully first, make it so that he can never have children again, then kill him. That should work for not quite normal, I'd think," he said. Gaara snorted in amusement, shaking his head.

"Whatever. You know Temari would kill him before you ever got the chance to," the younger of the two pointed out. Kankuro looked thoughtful for a few moments, then nodded in agreement.

"True." A comfortable silence fell between the two for a short time, and then Kankuro sighed, smiling at his younger brother.

"You know, this is nice. Spending time together and talking…" Gaara looked down at his brother, and his features softened.

"Yeah…it is…" Kankuro chuckled a little, pushing himself up into a sitting position. He pulled Gaara into a hug, and the redhead almost smiled, resting his head in the crook of Kankuro's neck.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, closing his eyes.

"Eh? What for?" Kankuro questioned, his cheek pressed against Gaara's hair. He couldn't think of anything that the other boy could possibly want to apologize for.

"For the way I was acting earlier…I-" Gaara cut himself off, still not quite ready to say the words to his brother, despite having heavily implied it during his little breakdown. "I do want to be with you, it's just that I'm worried…especially since Shukaku wants to hurt you now. He's dangerous, and…I'm afraid of him, of what he'll do once he gets out again." Kankuro shook his head, kissing his brother's hair gently.

"Hey, like I said before, don't worry about it. I can take care of myself." Then he put one of his hands underneath Gaara's chin, lifting it so that he could see his face. He studied the younger boy's features carefully, trying to memorize every little detail. The curve of his lips, his aqua eyes, his dark red bangs that contrasted nicely with his pale skin- Kankuro wanted to know all of it.

To his surprise, however, Gaara leaned up a little more, pressing his lips against the brunette's. Kankuro had no objections, though, and he kissed Gaara back, running his tongue teasingly over the redhead's bottom lip. Gaara opened his mouth slightly to let Kankuro's tongue in, and found himself moaning as the wet, pink muscle explored his mouth. He felt Kankuro's fingers tangling in his hair and allowed himself to be pushed down onto the bed, the kiss becoming more heated and passionate with each passing second.

When they finally broke apart for air, a flushed Gaara was surprised as Kankuro turned his attention to his neck, kissing and nipping the pale flesh.

"Kankuro," he moaned, his eyes becoming half-lidded as his brother's other hand slid up his shirt, running over his chest and stomach. He had never, ever felt anything like this before, and god, it felt _good_.

"Mmmm." Kankuro had moved on from Gaara's neck and was now working on his collarbone, which, to his delight, turned out to be one of his sensitive spots, which he found out because of the rather loud moan that the teen had elicited in response to the soft bite he'd placed on it.

The grip Gaara had on his brother's shoulders tightened and Kankuro smirked, his hand leaving the redhead's chest and traveling down to the waistband of his jeans. Gaara let out a sharp gasp at that, but before it could go any further, a shout came from the living room.

"Hey, it's almost time for dinner, so get washed up! That means washing off your paint, Kankuro!" The teen reluctantly got up, scowling in his sister's general direction.

"God damnit," he muttered. Gaara, who was trying to get his breathing back to normal, was also angry at his sister's ill-timed interruption. But, he wondered to himself, just how far would they have gone if Temari _hadn't_ interrupted them? He shook his head to try to rid himself of those thoughts, and then, for some reason, Kankuro started laughing.

"What?" Gaara asked, slightly irritated.

"You. It looks like I'm not the only one who has to wash paint off," the other responded, still chuckling as he got off his bed. Gaara blinked, staring at his older brother in confusion.

"What are you talking about?"

"Come on, I'll show you," Kankuro said, offering his hand to the redhead and pulling him out of the bed. He led Gaara to the bathroom that was connected to his room, and when Gaara saw himself in the mirror, he blushed a light pink. There were purple smudges all over his mouth, face, and neck from where Kankuro had kissed him. He thanked god that the bathroom was joined to Kankuro's room; if he'd walked out into the hall like this and Temari had seen him…he didn't even want to _think_ about it.

"Here," Kankuro said, handing Gaara a washcloth. Embarrassed, he took it and ran it under some warm water, then began to scrub at his skin in an attempt to remove all the purple substance. When he was satisfied, he carefully checked his neck for any marks Kankuro may have left. There were a few, but he could easily hide it if he were a turtleneck, which, luckily for him, he often did anyways.

"So, are you done?" Kankuro asked impatiently. Gaara nodded, and Kankuro took a towel out from underneath the sink, attempting to push Gaara towards the door at the same time.

"What's wrong?" Gaara asked.

"Nothing, I just need to take a shower, and I don't exactly have a lot of time, so the sooner you get out the better," the brunette responded briskly.

"A shower? All you have to do is wash your face off," Gaara said, confused.

"Yeah, but the paint'll come off easier in a shower. Besides, I need a cold one anyways; I'm just killing two birds with one stone."

"Why do you-" Gaara began, but then remembered that their…_activity_ earlier had been pretty exciting. Gaara left without another word, rushing to his room before Temari had the chance to see him. She probably would have fainted on the spot if she'd seen the bright red blush on Gaara's normally passive face.

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Well, I tried to make this a somewhat lighter chapter to make up for the angst in the previous one. Believe it or not, I have half of the wedding planned out already. XD Oh, and please tell me what you think about the limey bit- was it good, bad, terrible? I apologize if you didn't like it; it's one of the first of it's kind that I've done, so I probably sucked at it. I tried though. Anyways, hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	7. Play

A/N: Hello everyone! I hope you're all having good weather right now, cause we're sure not. The heat is becoming unbearable, I swear. X( Anywho, on to more important things; thanks once again to all my reviewers! I love you all so much, you have no idea how grateful I am. :) I'm glad you all liked the limey-bit, too. As for a lemon...I dunno. Time will tell. But there will definitely be more lime. :P And it makes me smile to hear all the stuff you guys said for Temari. :3 I also apologize for taking so long to update. I wanted to have this up last night, but I had worked for about four hours on this by then, and it was two in the morning, so I was just too exhausted. I made this longer though, so I hope that makes up for it a bit. :) And now, on with the fic!

Disclaimer: Same as always.

WARNING: Sandcest, SasoDei, yaoi. Don't like don't read.

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Gaara stayed in his room for the remainder of his time before dinner, trying hard not to think about what he and Kankuro had been doing just a little bit ago. Instead, he decided to focus on Temari and her engagement. He had always had a feeling that Shikamaru would be the one she'd marry; he'd been her boyfriend for nearly four years. They had had some rough times in their relationship, but in the end, they always came through together. The love they had was one that Gaara both envied and secretly admired.

Finally, however, Temari called out, "Dinner's ready!" Gaara walked over to his dresser and grabbed a black turtle neck he'd taken out earlier, pulling it on before he walked into the living room/dining room. When he saw the table, he paused and blinked in surprise. Behind him, a low whistle sounded.

"Man Temari, you really outdid yourself." Gaara turned to see Kankuro striding up to the table, his eyes wide in amazement. His hair was a little damp, but other than that and the missing face paint, you couldn't tell that he'd just been in the shower.

Then he turned his eyes back to the table, which was loaded with food. In the middle was a pot of spaghetti, with meatballs set in a small container beside it. There was a plate full of garlic bread on the other side of the spaghetti, and salad beside the meatballs. Gaara could also swear that he smelled brownies cooking in the oven.

"Going for the Italian theme tonight?" Kankuro asked, sinking into one of the chairs. Temari smiled, looking quite proud of herself.

"Yes, I am. It's Shikamaru's favorite." When Gaara turned to look at the chef herself, he was also in for a surprise. Temari had changed out of her work clothes and into a strapless, mint green dress, which ended a few inches above her knees. Gaara only ever saw her wear it when Shikamaru took her out on a date, and Kankuro must have been along the same line of thinking, because he amusedly remarked,

"Is that another one of Shikamaru's favorites?" Temari just smirked, though a light pink blush rose to her cheeks. Before either one of them could say anything else, the doorbell rang, and the blonde woman's face brightened up.

"Coming!" she shouted. She hurried to the door, and the brothers shot each other looks of shared amusement. When Temari came back, she was accompanied by her lazy fiancée, whose eyes widened a little at the sight of the dinner prepared on the table.

"You didn't have to do all this," Shikamaru said, gesturing towards the food. Temari shook her head, unable to keep the smile off her face.

"Yes, I did, so you better just sit down and appreciate it," she said in a mock-stern voice. Shikamaru kissed her on the cheek, then turned to face Kankuro and Gaara.

"Hey," he said simply. Gaara nodded in acknowledgement and Kankuro clapped a hand on the darker-haired male's shoulder.

"Heya Shikamaru. Congrats on finally asking her man," he grinned. Shikamaru's lips twitched into a smile.

"Thanks."

"All of you sit already," Temari said, taking her own seat at the table. "I'm starving, and I'm sure you are too, Shikamaru. You didn't get off work too long ago yourself, right?" He nodded, pulling out a chair and sitting next to her. Both brothers followed suit, sitting opposite of the couple.

For the first few minutes or so, it was quiet, since all four people at the table were too busy eating to talk. Kankuro was the one to break the silence, with his rather loud exclamation of, "This is great sis!"

Shikamaru nodded in agreement. "It is. Too bad Chouji isn't here…he'd love this." Temari chuckled, and the two began to discuss their various mutual friends, Kankuro occasionally joining in. Gaara, however, preferred to remain quiet until dinner ended. A delighted Temari took all the dishes and piled them into the sink, and though he deemed it quite troublesome, Shikamaru helped her.

"Temari, do you want to come over to my apartment for the night?" Shikamaru asked. The blonde frowned, looking at the dishes they'd just put in the sink.

"Well, I'd love to, but the dishes-"

"I'll wash them for you," Kankuro volunteered. "Me and Gaara can get it done quickly, so just go ahead and go, okay?" Temari blinked in surprise at her brother's offer, and saw Gaara nod his agreement. She smiled at them both gratefully, kissing Kankuro on the cheek and lightly resting a hand on Gaara's shoulder.

"Thanks you two. I'll see you tomorrow." She and Shikamaru both left after that, and Kankuro made a face as he looked at the dishes.

"Well, let's get started!" The ended up working out a system where Kankuro washed and Gaara dried and put them away. When they were finished, Kankuro yawned.

"Man I'm tired. All that food and practice earlier have me worn out. Not to mention I have to wake up early tomorrow. Would you mind me going to be now?" he asked Gaara, looking at him with his dark, tired green eyes. The younger of the two shook his head.

"No. I don't think I'm going to sleep tonight, though."

"Okay, fair enough," Kankuro said, shrugging. "'Night then." He hugged his younger brother for a minute, then kissed him on the forehead and went off to his room. The redhead smiled slightly as he went to his own room, pulling out one of his longer books, which, he decided, were probably safer than movies.

In Kankuro's room, however, the brunette wasn't nearly as at peace. He was tossing and turning, unable to get comfortable. It was odd; even though Gaara had only slept beside him for the past few days, he already found that he couldn't sleep without the redhead lying next to him.

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Gaara was still reading the next morning when he heard the telltale thump from across the hall that told him his brother had awakened. He decided to continue reading until Kankuro was finished getting ready, not wanting to bother him and possibly make him late again.

Finally, he heard a knock on his door, and he got up, having been ready to leave long before his brother. When he opened the door, however, he was pleasantly surprised by his brother kissing him right away, hugging him tightly as he did so. When he pulled away, Gaara's cheeks were flushed red, and he asked,

"Why did you do that?"

"Oh, just one for the road, y'know?" the puppeteer answered, winking at the younger boy. Gaara rolled his eyes, though they both knew that he didn't really mind.

"Anyways, are you ready to go?"

"Yes." Kankuro picked up Karasu and slung him over his back, then extended a hand to Gaara.

"Shall we go?" he asked mockingly. Gaara chose not to acknowledge him as he walked by, and Kankuro mock-huffed, crossing his arms as Gaara opened the front door. "Fine, be that way."

Once again, their walk to the theatre was quiet, until they reached the building itself. There was a large, plain white van parked outside in the front, and many other cars lined up and down the street.

"Huh, that's weird, I wonder what's going on," Kankuro said, a slight frown on his face. Both of them were surprised when they walked into the theatre, which was far more crowded than it normally was, and many of the people weren't there to practice with marionettes. Kankuro spotted Sasori near the stage and he and Gaara made their way through the people to get to the teacher.

"Hey, Sasori-sensei, what's going on?" Kankuro asked, looking around the theatre. Gaara was doing the same, although he felt extremely uncomfortable being around so many people.

Sasori shook his head and gestured towards the stage, where all kinds of props were being set up. "Well, we don't have practice today, as you can see. I've agreed to hand the stage over to the actors from the Konoha Troupe today." At hearing this, Kankuro's face lit up, and Gaara gave him a curious look.

"What is it? Who are they?" he asked.

"Oh, they're this awesome group of actors, like, major-ly good. The way they act- you have to see it, trust me. They're _amazing_!" Gaara blinked as his brother continued to rant about how absolutely awesome the actors were, until someone cut him off.

"Excuse me, Sasori, have you seen Itachi?" All three men looked at the newcomer, who was a rather pretty woman with brown hair pulled into two buns. She was wearing a sleeveless pink Chinese style shirt and blue jeans, and looked to be in either her late teens or early twenties.

"Yes, I believe he said he needed to grab something from the van," Sasori responded. She nodded, rolling her eyes.

"Figures." Then she finally seemed to notice Kankuro and Gaara, and a smile formed on her face. "Hey Kankuro-kun! How have you been?"

"Great Tenten-chan," he said, grinning. "You?"

"Same," she replied. She turned to Gaara, regarding him warmly. "I don't think we've met. I'm Tamura Tenten. You are…?"

"Sabaku Gaara," he said quietly as he shifted uncomfortably. Tenten's eyes widened in surprise, and she looked at Kankuro once more.

"I didn't know you had a brother!" she exclaimer. "You two don't look very much alike, except for the same, messy hair." Kankuro stuck out his tongue, and Gaara felt a slight pang of jealousy at the way the two interacted. It was quickly put to rest, however, when Kankuro asked,

"So, how's Naruto doing? You two still engaged?" Tenten laughed, her cheeks turning pink.

"He's doing great. Hyper as ever, of course; and yes, we're still engaged."

"That's good. And hey, Temari just got engaged too. The lazy-ass finally asked her."

"Really? How cool! Tell her to give me a call when she figures out a date; I'd love to go if I'm free."

"Sure thing," Kankuro said. Then he suddenly said, "Oh, hi Itachi." Gaara looked around, and when he saw no one close enough, he concluded that his brother was speaking to a man who had walked up behind Tenten. He had a rather unnerving expressionless demeanor, and pitch black eyes. He also had strange lines that seemed almost like they were from premature aging on either side of his nose, though aside from that he looked fairly young; mid-twenties was Gaara's guess. He had long black hair that was tied back into a ponytail, and was wearing a black, long-sleeved shirt and a pair of gray slacks.

"Kankuro," he said, nodding his acknowledgement to the puppeteer. Tenten immediately rounded on him, putting her hands on her hips as she did so.

"What did you have to get this time? We need to go and get ready, remember? Sai-'s probably already-"

"Ah, Tenten, Itachi, there you are. You're a little late, so you should hurry and get to the dressing rooms," said a pleasant voice. Gaara, Kankuro, and Sasori all turned to see a smiling, black haired male dressed in a black hakama, which looked very out of place among them.

"Speak of the devil," Tenten muttered. Itachi's expression remained impassive as he wordlessly nodded at Sasori, who nodded back, then walked past Sai, disappearing into a door beside the right wing exit. Sai, though his smile did not fade in the slightest, looked expectantly at Tenten, who cast an apologetic look at the two redheads and the brunette.

"Sorry, I've gotta go. See you later, Kankuro, Sasori. And it was nice meeting you, Gaara." Before any of them could reply, she hurried off in the same direction Itachi had gone. Sai shook his head, chuckling slightly. Then he faced Kankuro and Gaara, bowing slightly.

"I apologize for interrupting your conversation, but I had to get them into the dressing room. My name is Baiken Sai, by the way, and I sincerely hope you enjoy our show. And thanks again for allowing us to use your theater, Sasori-san," he said politely.

"You're welcome," Sasori said. Sai bowed once more, then followed after his companions.

"Man, that guy sure is formal," Kankuro said, a slight frown on his face.

"You don't know him?" Gaara asked. The older teen shook his head.

"Nope. I think he's new or something."

"Hey," Sasori cut in. "Both of you should get some seats now, if you're staying. The show will probably start as soon as they're ready."

"Right, thanks. But what about you?" Kankuro questioned. Sasori waved a hand dismissively.

"Deidara's saving a seat for me, so just go ahead and go, alright?" The two nodded and left the crimson-haired man to find themselves a place to sit.

When they found a pair of empty seats, the lights began to dim, though Gaara could still see the excited grin that spread across his brother's face.

"You'll like this, trust me," Kankuro whispered. Gaara nodded but didn't respond, and the play started.

Tenten, (whom Gaara noted no longer had her hair pulled into the two tight buns), was standing in the center of the stage. Her eyes were downcast, and she had a gentle, pleasant expression on her face. She was wearing a light blue kimono with a pattern of sakura flowers on it. Beside her was the man with the long black hair pulled into a ponytail, and Gaara was a little stunned by the emotion that was on his face; his earlier demeanor had been one of apathy, at best. Currently, he looked happy, though a part of his smile seemed sad.

"Would you care to walk with me, Tsubame-san?" he asked politely. Tenten turned to him, her features soft.

"Of course," she replied smoothly. They began walking towards the left of the stage, and began to talk as they did so.

"Tell me, Tsubame-san, have you ever been in love?" Itachi asked. A pink blush stained Tenten's cheeks, and she stopped.

"Why do you ask?" she questioned softly, though Gaara, Kankuro, and the rest of the audience could hear her perfectly.

Itachi's eyes stared directly into hers, and his expression became one of hope and desperation. "Because I have fallen for you, and I wish to know if you feel the same." Tenten gasped, taking a step away from him.

"Oh, Kei-san! I-I'm so sorry, really, b-but I'm in love with someone else!" She sounded both sad and sympathetic. Itachi grabbed her upper arms, and the desperate gaze did not waver.

"Who? Whom have you fallen in love with? Please, Tsubame-san, tell me!"

"H-Hatsu-san!" she answered. She sounded slightly afraid and embarrassed, and Itachi's expression turned to one of anger.

"Hatsu! That foolish little thief? Tsubame-san, surely you don't love _him_! He will never be able to give you what you want, do you understand that? He is a rat, not at all worthy of a woman like you!"

"Please, Kei-san, calm down! Hatsu-san isn't like that at all! He loves me!" Tenten said, her voice shaking. She tried to take another step away from him, but Itachi's grip was too strong. The look of fury and slight madness that adorned the man's face sent a shiver down Gaara's spine, as well as Kankuro's.

"Love? I doubt that he even knows the meaning of the word! Tsubame-san, I at least have my father's farm to my name! I could give you a comfortable life! Hatsu lives in what could barely be called a shack! He would never be able to make you happy!" Itachi thundered. Tenten shook her head, trembling.

"You're wrong! Just being near him makes me happy, and-"

"Enough!" Itachi shouted, pulling Tenten into a rough kiss. Gaara held his breath as they broke apart, Tenten screaming as Itachi attempted to push her to the ground. The tears streaming down her cheeks seemed so realistic, as did the terror in her voice and eyes.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Kei?" said a sharp, angry voice. Gaara's mouth nearly fell open when he saw whom the voice belonged to.

It was Sai, who had been nothing but polite and pleasant when Gaara had met him. The anger on his face seemed genuine as he strode up to Itachi and Tenten, forcefully pulling the crazed man away from the now hopeful brunette.

"Hatsu!" She attempted to run into his arms, but Itachi blocked her, staring at Sai with extreme contempt.

"You bastard! What do you think you're doing?" he snarled. Sai's face darkened, and Gaara gripped the chair's armrests.

"I could ask you the same! How dare you try and force yourself on her, you pig!" Itachi laughed, and Gaara couldn't help but shudder as a memory forced its way into his mind. The laughter was so much like Yashamaru's had been on that day…when he had-

Gaara's thoughts were interrupted as a loud clang sounded on the stage. Sai had pulled out a dagger, as had Itachi, and they were met blade to blade. The intense expressions on their faces told Gaara that it would be a fight to the death. While they exchanged blows, they spat insults at each other, each worse than the last.

"You filthy scumbag!"

"Street trash!"

"Bastard!"

"Lowlife!"

The battle continued for another three minutes or so before suddenly, the lights went out, Tsubame letting out a scream at the same time, which alerted everyone to the fact that someone had been killed. It was pitch black in the theatre, so everyone held their breaths as they waited for the lights to turn back on and reveal who had perished.

When the light did return on the stage, there was an audible sigh of relief from the audience. Sai was the one left standing, and he was currently holding Tenten in his arms, Itachi's body lying near them.

"Oh Hatsu! I was so worried! I thought you- I thought you-!"

"Hush," Sai replied gently. "I'm fine. The important thing is, are you?"

Tenten sobbed, her hands clutching at his chest. "I'm f-fine! You saved me, Hatsu, thank you. I'm so glad that you're alive, but…" She looked at Itachi, her eyes puffy and red. "I wish it hadn't come to this. Kei-san was not in his right mind when he attacked me. I just hope that he's at peace, wherever he is."

"I can't say that I ever liked him," Sai began. "But he was obviously a friend to you…so I apologize for what I did. I truly do hope that you're right about him resting in peace." Then the two shared a kiss, and the stage darkened once again. The lights over the audience came on, and with them came a roar of applause.

"See, it was great, huh?" Kankuro shouted over the noise. Gaara nodded, not willing to raise his voice over the crowd. The show had indeed been good, though what Gaara had liked most was the acting itself rather than the plot. All the emotions seemed real and heartfelt, and that was incredibly interesting in itself.

When the two were finally able to get outside, Kankuro slung an arm around Gaara's shoulders.

"You know, I'm really glad you were able to meet Tenten. She's a really nice girl, I've known her for awhile now. She's only nineteen, you know. I hope she does come to the wedding; you have to meet Naruto. He can be annoying sometimes, but he's a great guy." Gaara sighed, struggling not to smile. He had never met any of his brother's friends before, and for some reason, it felt good now that he finally had.

"What about that man, Itachi?" Gaara queried. Kankuro looked thoughtful as he pondered the question, before shrugging.

"Itachi's kind've hard to get to know. He's a decent enough guy, but he barely talks. He's sort of cold, too…but, he has a younger brother, Sasuke, and he's a right little asshole. Arrogant, too. But Itachi cares about him a lot, so we don't ever try and say anything to him. This one guy, Orochimaru- he's a teacher at our school, and Gaara, thank god you've never met him, 'cause he's creepy as _hell_, but anyways, he tried to mess with Sasuke, and you should have _seen_ Itachi when he found out." The brunette shuddered, and Gaara could only guess what Itachi had done.

"'Mess with him'? Did he try to hit him?"

Kankuro snorted. "More like hit _on_ him. The guy's a total pedophile, and he was obsessed with Sasuke. I felt bad for him, you know, 'cause even assholes like him don't deserve someone like Orochimaru to do that. But yeah, Sasuke told Itachi about it, and he was livid. Orochimaru was fired right away, mostly because the Uchiha's have serious connections."

Kankuro continued to tell Gaara stories about his friends, the redhead content to listen to him. When they reached their home, Kankuro went to the bathroom to wash of his make-up and Gaara sat down on the couch, turning on the TV.

The rest of their day was spent uneventfully, the brothers mostly watching various shows and movies that came on. Temari called to let them know that she would be staying at Shikamaru's another night, and finally, at about 11:00, Kankuro declared that he was ready to go to sleep.

"You coming with?" Kankuro asked through a yawn.

"Sure," Gaara responded, surprised at how tired he himself felt. He just hoped he'd have a peaceful sleep like he had the other night. Kankuro smiled, personally thankful that his brother would be near him that night.

The puppeteer yawned again as he walked towards his bedroom, Gaara following close behind him. When they got into the bed, Kankuro threw an arm around his brother, pulling him close.

"G'night Gaara," he murmured, his eyes slipping shut.

"Goodnight," Gaara whispered. Kankuro was asleep almost immediately, but Gaara stayed up just a little longer to watch his older brother sleep. Then he too drifted off, curled against Kankuro's chest.

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_"Uncle Yashamaru?" Weird…it was so dark in his room. Usually Yashamaru liked everything to be well lit, because he had somewhat poor eyesight. He crept into the room slowly, trembling slightly. He didn't like the dark himself…it scared him._

_"Uncle Yashamaru? Are you in here?" he asked. When no answer greeted him, he left the room, both relieved and confused. Where could he be?_

_"Over here, Gaara-chan," came a soft voice. Gaara sighed, a small smile on his young face. So Yashamaru was in the bathroom then…probably just washing his face up, like he usually did. He allowed himself to giggle slightly when he thought about how much his uncle liked to take care of his looks. It was understandable, considering that he was quite pretty; however, he was so feminine that it had become a running joke between Kankuro, Temari, and Gaara to call him 'Aunt Yashamaru' or 'Yashahime'. The blonde often scolded them when they did so (not without laughing or blushing, though)._

_As Gaara thought about all this, he walked to the bathroom, standing on his tip-toes to open the door. He was short even for a six year old, and usually Kankuro, Temari, or Yashamaru opened doors for him when they were around. When he got it open, his mind and body froze in shock. His uncle was in there, yes, but he was not washing himself up. It was very much the opposite._

_Yashamaru sat fully clothed in the bathtub, which was filled to the brim with red water. Each of his wrists bore vertical cuts that bled profusely, and his skin was unnaturally pale. On his face was a worn, but mocking smile._

_"What's the matter Gaara-chan? Are you afraid?" The small redhead's mouth was a wide 'o' of horror, and he backed up out of the room until his back hit the wall opposite the bathroom door. Then, as if the light thump broke him out of his shock, he screamed as loud as he could. _

_Kankuro and Temari were out in the hallway in a hurry, running towards their terrified brother. They emitted screams of their own, however, when they saw the state their uncle was in._

_"Oh my god, oh my god, Temari! The blood! Uncle Yashamaru- the blood!" shouted Kankuro. The nine-year old blonde looked at her brothers, than back at her uncle, all the blood draining out of her face. She ran into their living room and dialed '9-1-1', and both Gaara and Kankuro could hear her frantic, teary voice as she asked for an ambulance._

_Gaara was the first of the two to notice the flash of silver as their uncle raised his hand, and he gasped when he realized that it was the razor he'd used to slit his wrists. The smile on Yashamaru's face growing wider, he brought the razor up to his throat, and a strange, chilling laugh erupted from him._

_"U-Uncle Yashamaru! W-Why?" Gaara asked, tears running down his cheeks. "I love you! We a-a-all l-love you!" _

_"Oh? Well I'm afraid I can't say the same to you, Gaara-chan. You see, I despise you with every fiber of my being. I tried to love you- really, I did. However, I couldn't; I just couldn't love a demon like you." Yashamaru's voice was polite, as it always was, but there was also a deep, terrifying amount of insanity present in his tone that made Gaara scream again._

_"No! NO! Uncle Yashamaru!" he sobbed. _

_"Good-bye, Gaara-chan," Yashamaru said. He then brought the razor across his throat, and both Gaara and Kankuro sobbed and screamed. Gaara could feel something inside himself breaking, and he-_

_Suddenly, it was gone. Yashamaru, the blood, Kankuro- it was replaced with Gaara's room, and an even younger Gaara. He was only about four or five, and he was sitting on his floor, playing with the blocks Kankuro had lent him._

_"Gaara."_

_He looked up to see his father standing in the doorway, a cold expression on his face._

_"Yes daddy?" he responded, unsure of why his father began to look so angry._

_"Your room's a fucking mess. How many times to I have to tell you to clean it up?" Gaara blinked and looked around, seeing only his precious teddy bear and the blocks on his floor._

_"But daddy, my woom's not messy," he protested. He instantly regretted it when his father's eyes narrowed in a dark glare, and the man strode over to him, towering over the small boy in a way that filled him with dread._

_"How dare you talk back to me like that? You ungrateful little bastard!" The redhead's eyes widened in fear as his father raised a fist over his head, then brought it down._

"No!" Gaara shouted, pushing his arms out and effectively waking Kankuro. The older teen became alert as soon as he saw his brother, who was flinching and wincing, as though he was being hit by some invisible force. And with a feeling of cold dread, he realized that Gaara was crying.

"Gaara? Gaara! Wake up!" her shouted, shaking his convulsing brother in desperation. He could tell by the expression of pain and horror on his face that the younger male was having a nightmare. Still shaking him, Kankuro shouted, "Wake up! Snap out of it, Damnit!"

Gaara awoke with a scream.

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Oh man, angst. :( Sorry about that, but I had to put it in…I'm sure you can all guess what happened, though I will explain it in the next chapter. And sorry if the 'play' was bad…I blanked out halfway through. --;; But anyways, this was eight and a half pages long without the author notes! I think this is possibly the longest I've ever written for ANY of my story chapters. God I love this story. Hope you liked the chapter!


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